Robin shouted for the boys to run, to get out of there as quickly as possible while he held the witch off. He didn't know where they would go, what area could possibly be safe from someone who possessed magical abilities. All he knew was that he wouldn't be able to bear it if anything happened to either of the boys.

"Wait!" the shop owner, whose name tag read Tink, cried as the two youngest people in the room started to do as Robin had begged them to. "Don't!" She looked at Regina, tears in her eyes. "She won't hurt you."

"How do you know that?" Henry asked, his eyes wide.

"Because we were acquaintances, once upon a time."

It wasn't Tink who had spoken, but Regina. She was looking at the shopkeeper with an expression of awe, letting Robin know that what she said, and what the proprietor had said before, was somehow the truth.

He stared from one to the other, completely dumbfounded. "How?" It was the only thing he could think to utter, the only way he could even begin to make sense of any of this.

"That is a question to which I would like to know the answer as well," Regina said, glaring at the shop owner and tucking a wayward strand of hair behind her ear. The gesture only served to unwind another lock from where it had been meticulously placed in the rest of her hairstyle, but she didn't seem to notice. Robin, however, had the sudden urge to cross the distance between them and tuck that errant strand back into place, but he didn't dare. He couldn't do it, not when the act would likely mean nothing good for him, let alone Henry and Roland. She might be bewitchingly beautiful, but who knew what she was capable of?

The woman who apparently had once been her friend sighed. "Come with me, all of you."

Robin and the rest did as she asked, Robin making sure he was in the middle of the group, closest to Regina. He was entranced by her beauty, of course, but his primary concern was Roland and Henry's safety. Nothing mattered more than that.

Robin glanced around as he entered the shop's loft apartment, noting the comfortable yet modest furniture, and other signs that someone had lived here for a very long time. The apartment had clearly been lived in, but for exactly how long, Robin couldn't tell. He found it hard to believe that the blonde would have stayed in the same place for who knew how many years. It was highly unlikely that someone wouldn't have gotten suspicious in that amount of time. Add that to the fact that the woman seemed to be about his own age, and Robin found their story incredibly hard to believe. Sure, she seemed familiar with Regina, but that didn't mean anything, especially considering where she lived and what she did. She had been surrounded by the legend of the Mills sisters for he had no idea how long. Who knew what had gotten into her head?

Regina, he noticed, immediately walked over to sit on the couch, sinking into it with a familiarity that only gave credence to what she and the shop owner had claimed. Henry and Roland followed her example. Only Robin stood at the edge of the room, not quite knowing what to do with himself.

"Make yourself at home," Tink beckoned with a wave of her hand. "I don't bite- and neither does Regina, believe it or not."

Robin looked around, then noticed that there was a space between Henry and Roland on the sofa where they were sitting. He quickly walked over to them, sitting between them so Regina didn't get any ideas. People always said there was safety in numbers, right?

They all looked expectantly at the shop owner, and she took a deep breath before beginning to speak. "First and foremost, my name isn't Nellie Tink. It's Tinkerbell."

Robin was sure his mouth dropped open at those words, and he could see the amazement on Henry and Roland's faces as well. He definitely hadn't expected that by any means, and neither had they, despite their young ages. "Really?" his son breathed.

Tink nodded, and her confirmation seemed to light a fire in Roland as he rattled off a long list of questions that Robin knew he had been dying to ask the actors who dressed as characters in Disney World and Disneyland, a place he hadn't had the opportunity to visit with his son just yet. "Did you really help Peter defeat Captain Hook? Can you fly anywhere you want? Is it cool to have your own movie? Do you have as much pixie dust as you want, or does it run out? Why do you not have your wings?"

"Hold on, Roland, slow down," Robin cautioned, putting his palms up face out. "Let poor Tink answer one question at a time."

Tinkerbell shook her head, smiling. "Don't worry about him, it's completely fine. I've been waiting for the day that people would be asking me all these questions. I haven't told anyone but kids Roland's age my secret all these years."

"Really?" Robin asked, his eyes wide. He would have thought that she wouldn't have told anyone at all. After all, children Roland's age were known for telling any secret with no filter for what information should and shouldn't be shared.

Tink nodded. "Of course. People wouldn't believe them if they shared my secret, after all. It would be like the boy who cried wolf."

Robin nodded, seeing the logic behind her decision. At the same time though… "Weren't you ever afraid one of them would share your secret?" It was something that made her story a little less plausible. After all, kids Roland's age were known for telling anyone anything if they paid attention long enough to listen.

She cocked her head to the side, considering her answer. "Yes and no. Someone that young… The chances of an adult believing them are slim. Not that that's a good thing," she added quickly, focusing her attention on Henry and Roland. "But unfortunately, sometimes, that's the way it is.

"You're probably wondering if we have any proof that we are who we say we are, especially me," she added, gesturing to Regina. "I don't know if you've seen it, but there's-"

"A portrait of the Mills sisters in the mansion," Robin finished for her. "I know, I've seen it."

"Good! Then we just have to worry about me," the woman who called herself Tinkerbell noted, rubbing her hands together.

Robin raised his eyebrows. "You think I'm going to believe that Regina is good just by taking your word for it?"

"If you would stop talking about me like I am not in the room, it would be greatly appreciated," the brunette snapped. "I may be back after I do not even know how many years-"

"Three hundred," Henry supplied helpfully.

"But that doesn't mean I can't hear or speak for myself."

There was fire in her eyes, and it was a fire he knew he didn't want to mess with. "Fair point, milady. I sincerely apologize, and won't do it again."

"Milady?" She glanced over at the woman who claimed to be Tinkerbell. "You said we're three centuries from when we lived, right?"

Tink nodded.

She laughed, and Robin tried desperately not to be entranced by the sound. He needed to keep his wits about him, not be enthralled by the woman before him. It was lovely though, the best laugh he had ever heard. "People are still calling women 'milady'? I would have thought women had gained more freedom than that over the years." She turned her gaze to Robin, and he might have been on his guard against any tricks she might pull, but there was still a little part of him that loved the fire in her glare. "Do not get any notions into your head. I am not the kind of woman who will just fawn all over you just because you are a man and I am a woman. It is nice to see that chivalry isn't dead though."

"He's one of the few," Tink muttered, and Robin found himself wanting to find whoever had done her wrong and tell them what a colossal mistake they had made.

He cleared his throat, trying to change the subject back to what they had originally been discussing. "Anyway… Why have you stuck around all this time?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Tink asked softly. "I'm here to help make sure Cora doesn't come back and Zelena doesn't cause too much damage. Henry too."

Henry.

Hearing the name was like lighting a fire in Regina's heart. She knew her mother had cursed him, but three hundred years… Her heart beat wildly as she asked, "He- he's still here?"

Tink nodded with a sad smile. "He is."

A lump was in Regina's throat after hearing the confirmation. Her father had been alive all this time. What did he think of the world around him, the changes in the three hundred years since they had lived? More importantly, she doubted he had had much to do in all that time, so he had probably had had a lot of time to think about the past and, more specifically, her actions when she had last been alive. He probably thought she was the most horrible daughter by now.

Determined not to cry at the thought of that possibility in front of these strangers, she swallowed hard. "Is he cross with me?" She knew she didn't need to ask if Tink had been keeping him company. It wasn't in her nature to leave someone defenseless.

Tink shook her head. "Regina, you know your father. Would he be mad at you when you didn't do anything?"

The man who had situated himself between the two adorable boys cleared his throat. "I apologize for the interruption, but none of this answers my question. How do I know you're really from Regina's time?"

"My familiarity with her isn't enough for you?"

It was a good point, one that, to Regina's delight, made the man squirm uncomfortably. He looked around him frantically. "Look, none of this tells me why I should trust either of you with these boys' lives."

Roland gasped. "Daddy, it's Tinkerbell! She's good!" Regina loved the faith this little boy had in her friend. It made her have hope that these people would trust her too. Not that that was incredibly likely, given that they had probably heard legends about her and her sisters their entire lives. She doubted the people of Salem had changed much over the centuries, and one thing they all loved was telling stories, wild gossip that had very little basis in fact. Only Tink perhaps would even have any idea what these people had heard about her.

The strange man sighed. Regina could tell he was trying to figure out how he could explain this to his son, and it gave her no small amount of satisfaction. Let him fumble around all he wanted. It did impact the little boy negatively though, and for that, her heart went out to him. "In the movie she is, Roland, but this isn't Peter Pan. We don't know how different fairies are from people- or even if she's a fairy."

Tink held up a finger. "Hang on. Give me one minute, and I'll have something that will leave you with no doubts about who I am "

She stood and left, leaving Regina with these strangers. The boys kept sneaking glances in her direction, as did the man with them. He, at least, was trying to be subtle about it, but at the end of the day, it was not working. "Why are you all staring?" she asked. Her words would have been much more harsh- something along the lines of Stop staring or I'll turn you into a toad- but she did not want to scare the boys. She was sure no one would believe it, but she had always loved children.

The cheeks of the man reddened and he quickly looked away, but the little boy said quietly, awe laced in every word, "I've never seen a witch before, especially not one so pretty."

Regina was mortified when she felt her cheeks heat up. Yes, it was a child who had said the words, but the child in question… it was ridiculous, utterly ridiculous, that she should blush in that moment. This most certainly was not a sign of the daughter her mother raised. Cora had taught them to not only take pride in their beauty, but to flaunt it, which Regina had done. It was one of the few things her mother had asked of her that she had actually enjoyed, at least a little bit. She hated that she had had to use it for a bad reason, of course, but it had been a least a little fun in a way, making men squirm when she walked by. How was this little boy able to extract this reaction from her? "Thank you."

At that moment, she heard Tink's shoes on the floor beneath them, and she internally breathed a sigh of relief. She could talk to the children all day, but the man… she had never quite known what to do with men in a serious situation, when she wasn't following her mother's whims. There was a part of her that wanted to learn how the town and life in general had changed over the past however many centuries since she had last walked these roads, but she knew that was a better question for Tink, especially if her friend had in fact been here all this time.

"Here," she said, holding the small bottle into the space between them. "It's all I have left."

The bottle contained a sparkling substance, and Regina spent a second wondering what it was before the younger of the two boys exclaimed, "Pixie dust!"

"Does it actually work though?" the man asked. It seemed to Regina that it was the only way he could think of to doubt her without making the little boy who seemed to be in his care (though they bore no familial resemblance) not believe in magic. The child was too young to lose that belief just yet. "Isn't there no magic here?" Silly mortal. It was so naive of him to not believe in magic, to be so close-minded.

Instead of answering, Tink carefully unscrewed the top of the lid and sprinkled some on herself. The two boys gasped as, to Regina's surprise, she rose off the ground. She flew around the room once, then twice (partly to prove to them all that she could, Regina thought,). Then, clearly responding to both boys' shouts of delight, she did a final lap around the room, doing flips and cartwheels and spins in the air. Regina honestly didn't know how she wasn't dizzy afterwards.

At last, she came to rest on the ground, and the two boys rushed over to her. Regina honestly was a little surprised that the boy who was almost a man was showing as much enthusiasm as his younger counterpart, but she supposed that a lot of things had changed in three centuries. She could not be certain of anything anymore. It was apparently possible that he could suspend disbelief, especially when faced with concrete evidence.

As for the man, though… honestly, she guessed that he didn't quite know what to think. It was possible that the part of him that had always loved fantasy (he had to enjoy magic, no other man would wear a cape) was ecstatic at this news. "Can you do any magic, or is this it? Is there some kind of limit to magic here? Are there worlds other than this one?"

Regina couldn't help laughing as Tink grinned. This man was an idiot. "There we go. Those are the kinds of questions I was anticipating. It's… kind of a long story."

"Make it as quick as possible," Regina interjected. "You forget, my sisters are expecting me to report back. I cannot stay away forever, or they will know that something is amiss."

"True," Tink mused, casting her eyes around the room. Her eyes lit up as she rushed over to the main cashier stand and pulled out a drawer. She rummaged around in it for a minute, finally extracting something and coming back to them. When she got closer, Regina saw she had a small contraption in her hand.

She pressed a button and held it out to Regina. "This is an old phone of mine. I can quickly teach you how to use it and we can use it to communicate."

Regina stared at the phone with a blank expression on her face as Tink handed it over to her. She was telling her something about the letters that were arranged in such an unusual way and how to send her a message, and Regina tried to follow along as best she could. She did not know why Tink was doing this, to some degree. She knew she needed to be able to let them know what was happening, but there had to be an easier way than this. Did they not still use messengers in this time period?

"And that's pretty much it. Got it?" Tink asked.

Regina stared at the small thing and nodded, not knowing what else to do. Her friend had become a woman of this century, and she had clearly forgotten just how much things had changed in the time Regina had been gone.

It seemed, though, that Tink was able to read her expression. "Here," she instructed. "I'm going to have it ready for you to text me- send a message," she clarified when she saw Regina's blank expression. "That way, all you have to do is type it and press send."

Relieved that her friend had picked up on her cluelessness without her having to say anything, even after all this time, Regina nodded.

Tink handed her the device- had she called it a phone?- and put a hand on her shoulder. "Good luck." She would need it, too. Dealing with her family was never an easy task.

Once Tinkerbell (it was still so strange to call her that) had sent Regina off, it seemed that Roland couldn't hold back his questions any longer. "Can anyone do magic here? What else can you do? Is there something you can't do?"

Tink shook her head. "Unfortunately, since this is the Land Without Magic, only people who had magic before coming to this world can use it here. I can do a lot of things, but I'm not going to show you everything." She grinned. "I do like to keep some surprises up my sleeve "

Roland pouted, but Robin knew exactly why Tink had made the decision not to reveal the extent of her powers. He had questions of his own too- namely, how Regina and her family had powers, what land they had come from that had given their abilities to them. "Roland, Tink is a person, not an animal you would find in the zoo. Would you like it if you were asked to do something just because someone wanted to see you do it, like your homework?"

Roland made a face at his suggestion. "No. But being able to do magic is so much cooler than doing homework!"

Tink laughed. "You're right, it is. How about this: I'll show you one more thing I can do and tell you a little more about magic in this world, and then we can get a little further in planning how to defeat Regina's sisters?"

Roland nodded reluctantly. "Okay."

"There's only a certain amount we can do, especially as fairies. You know that all fairies are good, right?" At Roland's nod, she continued. "We aren't allowed to do any dark magic, and honestly," she added with a shudder. "I wouldn't want to."

"What counts as dark magic?" he asked. Robin would've been concerned about the question, as any parent would be, but he knew his son was just curious.

"Tink might not be able to tell you that," Robin warned, but Tink shook her head.

"It's okay, I can. What do you think would be dark magic?" she asked his son, looking at Henry to let him know he would answer as well.

"Dying?" Henry asked quietly. "Killing someone? Hurting someone on purpose?"

Tink nodded solemnly. "Exactly. There are other things too, but those are the main ones."

"How did the fairies get here?" Roland asked. "How is there magic that only some people can use?" He thought for a minute, then his eyes lit up. "Can you get to the places with magic?"

Tink smiled sadly. "I hate to say it, but that's something that's really hard to do. There aren't many ways to get between them, and a lot of those have been lost over the years, especially here, where magic can't be found everywhere like it can be in other places. So sometimes, yes, but it's really tricky."

"All right, I think that's enough asking Tink questions for one night," Robin interjected before either boy could say another word. "We need to focus on how we're going to defeat the witches, right?"

"We do," Tink mused. "And between Henry and I, we've been thinking about that and planning for it for a long time." She smiled. "Listen to what we've come up with, and you can help me make any adjustments…"